


Don't Want to Let You Down

by Krank



Series: Hell Bound [3]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Hunting, Intimacy, Love Confessions, M/M, Shower Sex, Supernatural - Freeform, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-01
Updated: 2013-11-01
Packaged: 2017-12-31 03:47:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1026887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Krank/pseuds/Krank
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Harry and Niall race to Seattle to rescue Louis, though Niall soon finds himself on his own, left to make a tough decision and fully embrace the life he chose for himself back in Gold Canyon. Warning: graphic scenes. Loosely based on themes from Supernatural.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Don't Want to Let You Down

**Author's Note:**

> This is all I had pre-written, so the updates will be coming slower after this. I apologize.  
> And I'm still very much interested in edits and artwork that people might dream up for this story :) I love that sort of stuff, and would like to publish it with each new part!  
> Enjoy!

The interstate between Gold Canyon and the border of Arizona was nothing but a long stretch of asphalt and desert. The drive was silent for Harry, the only sound being the purr of the Mustang’s engine. Niall slept beside him in the passenger seat, head against the window. He was going to have a kink in his neck later, but there was nothing Harry could do. He wasn’t about to wake the boy up so that he could recline his seat. Niall had had a long night.

Harry felt tired, and kept his window rolled down to keep alert. He wasn’t planning on stopping for any sort of siesta before he got to Seattle and pulled Louis out of whatever danger he was in. Images of what might be happening to him stirred around in his head, which didn’t help his sleep-deprived brain. He didn’t let his mind stray far enough to imagine Louis dead, though. Louis couldn’t be dead. The little bastard had been through way too much and survived to find his end among a nest of vamps. Vampires liked to play with their food, and Harry hoped that they were as fond of Louis as the rest of the world seemed to be.

Niall woke up just as they were crossing in to Nevada some five hours after tearing out of Gold Canyon. Harry watched out of the corner of his eye as the blond stretched in the cramped front seat. He blinked a couple times, looked at his surroundings, and then turned to Harry. He frowned. “Oh.”

Harry raised an eyebrow as he continued to stare at the road. “What?”

“Sorry,” Niall yawned. “Didn’t know where I was for a moment.”

“Thought you’d been kidnapped, did you?” Harry mused.

“Mm,” Niall leaned his head back against his headrest, sliding down in his seat to put his feet on the dashboard. “How are you doing?”

Harry sighed, rubbing his eyes slowly. “I’m fine.”

The car was cast in to silence again. Niall could feel tension in the air, though he knew it wasn’t directed at him. He sensed that Harry needed to be left alone with his thoughts. Instead of trying to make strained conversation, he occupied himself with counting road signs.

As the minutes ticked by on the lonely highway, the mood in the car became even more somber. Harry was completely silent, transfixed on the road ahead of him. The atmosphere was so stale that Niall kept his excitement to himself as they passed in to Las Vegas. It was a city on his to-do list, and he craned his neck a little in order to gaze longingly at The Strip. Even in the daytime, the city still looked like a good time. When this was all over, Niall wanted to go.

He stopped himself, thinking over what had just crossed his mind. _When this was all over._ That was quite a statement in itself. _Would_ it ever be over? They were going to find Louis, but this hunting business was a full-time job, Harry had said. Niall assumed he had seen too much already for it to ever be possible to go back to a normal life. Niall wasn’t sure he wanted a normal life, anyways. A normal life meant a life without Harry, because Harry wasn’t allowed to be normal.

Some time later, Niall was in desperate need of a toilet. Or a bush; a bush would be just fine. He squirmed in his seat, trying to subtly lock his ankles and squash his thighs together. He took deep breaths as his bladder made a cry for help, trying to occupy his mind with other things. Harry had been ever silent, and Niall was afraid to make a sound in case he startled him or angered him. He couldn’t read Harry, and he didn’t know how cautiously he should tread.

The landscape around them was flat and desolate. The colors were washed out, with blue colored mountains far off in the distance. The road was cracked and rough from too much dry heat and traffic passing over it. Niall briefly wondered about the amount of money it took to maintain major highways in the southwestern states. It had to be a lot.

“What’s wrong?” The sudden sound of Harry’s voice made Niall jump out of his skin.

“What do you mean?” Niall feigned ignorance, keeping his attention on the land.

“You’re squirming around like a kitten. What’s up?” Harry inquired, but he didn’t pull over, or even slow down.

“I, um… I sort of have to use the toilet.” Niall said softly, feeling slightly ashamed.

“What? Why didn’t you say something? How long have you had to go?” Harry’s voice raised a few octaves, though he continued to hold the car steady between the painted lines on the highway.

“Well,” Niall thought about it. “Probably two miles outside of Vegas?”

“Vegas?” Harry frowned at the speedometer.

“Yeah, you know… Vegas? We drove along the Vegas freeway. We practically crossed over The Strip!” Niall explained.

“I… I don’t remember that.”

They pulled up to the first service station they found. It was like a picture from a bad horror movie, with only one functioning pump and a bunch of rusted out vehicles in the lot behind it. Niall wasn’t picky, though, as he darted in to the convenience store and retrieved the bathroom key like a champ.

When he returned, Harry was leaning on the hood of the Mustang, looking at a map. Niall took a moment to appreciate the man he was traveling with. Long legs, a torso covered in lean muscle, a handsome face, and a head of unruly brown curls that he kept combed back off of his forehead in a bit of a pompadour style. He lived in black skinny jeans and various well-loved t-shirts, prints ranging from Americana to old vintage logos. He looked a little like a bad boy, and he could be one when he needed to, but most of the time he was just a gangly, awkward young man with a big heart and a dirty sense of humor.

“You like what you see? I’ll have to start charging you eventually,” Harry called over, pulling Niall from his ogling. The taller boy had a smile on his face, and seemed a little more relaxed than he had when they were on the road.

Niall sauntered over to him and snatched the map from his hands, placing himself between the brunette’s thighs. Harry’s arms came up around him instinctively, large hands resting on his lower back. “I bought us some nutritious snacks.”

Niall glanced beside him and spotted a plastic bag full of chips, soda and gummy bears. “Yeah, I’d say that’s quite a balanced diet,” he teased.

“It’s hard work to look this good,” Harry grinned, leaning forward in to Niall’s personal space. Niall eagerly closed the distance between them, kissing Harry softly.

“Can we start over?” Harry asked as Niall pulled away.

“Start over?” The blond asked.

“Yeah, you know…” Harry stuck out his hand. “Hi. I’m Harry. I hunt demons and live out of my car.”

Niall grinned and grabbed his offered hand, shaking it. “I’m Niall. I used to be a bartender.”

Harry pulled him in, squeezing him tightly. “Nice to meet you, Niall.”

“You’ve been driving for a long time, Harry. Are you sure you’re alright?” Niall asked in to the fabric of his t-shirt.

Harry sighed. “I’ve driven for longer.”

“I don’t like seeing you this way. I know that you’re upset, and hurting, but please talk to me. Don’t shut me out at a time like this. You have _me_ now. You have someone to talk to on the road. You scare me a little when you’re so quiet.”

“I’m sorry.” Harry pulled him in again and kissed him. “I’m really happy you’re here, Niall.”

———

As the desolate terrain around them shifted in to more fertile soil with actual grass and trees, Niall tore his eyes away from the scenery and looked across the car at Harry. He had ditched his trainers and had his feet up on the dashboard, the wind from the open window ruffling his blond hair. He looked beautiful, though Harry could tell from the look on his face that he had something on his mind.

“Your family… Were they a ploy to gain my trust, or did you really lose them?”

Harry’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. He cleared his throat.

“Yes. They died when I was fifteen.”

Niall’s expression softened. “I’m sorry. I just… I needed to know. You said that all you lied about was your job, but… I had to be sure.”

“No, no, I understand.” Harry deserved to be doubted until Niall was completely over what had happened the night before. It would take some time for all of their ripped seams to be mended, and Harry would continue to try and make it up to him until things were perfect again.

“And you said you were born in to a family of hunters… So they did what you do now?” Niall continued asking his questions.

“The exact same. We were quite a team. Do you… would you like to hear about them?”

Niall smiled brightly. “Of course I would, if you’re okay with it. I don’t want to pry.”

Harry shrugged. “It’s fine. I sort of like to talk about them.

“I was actually born in the U.K. We only moved to America when I was four years old. I don’t remember much about Britain. I vaguely remember our home. It was a small one-level, I think. I don’t have much emotional attachment to it, either. It’s barely a part of me. I do remember my father leaving for long periods of time, though. Gemma was still too young at the time as well, so he always went alone. My mum would home school her. We hardly ever participated in the community.

“We lived in an RV from the very start once we moved here. We traveled around, and my father continued to hunt. My mother began my lessons when I was five. I learned the basics, like math and reading and writing. She worked hard to teach us everything we needed to know, by the laws of the government. We were always at the level that children our age were.”

Niall was nodding along as he spoke, staring at him intently. His knees were drawn up close to him, his toes curled over the edge of his seat. Harry didn’t remember when the blond had decided to remove his trainers.

“When Gemma was ten, she started to learn about new things. My parents weren’t afraid to expose us to all the evil that was actually lurking outside our door. I remember being so mad when she got to go off with dad and hunt. I still didn’t quite grasp what ‘hunting’ actually was, but I would always have to sit at home with my mother and learn more.

“We had bought a house by that point. It was big and old, and had a lot of rooms. Almost as soon as we got it we started playing host to other hunters. There were all shapes and sizes and genders coming through our door. Some were alone, and some were in teams. They shared all sorts of stories with me, which my mother hated because they gave me nightmares. They were nothing compared to the nightmares that I started having once I was actually out doing my job, though.”

“So you’ve been having nightmares your entire life, then?” Niall cut in. Harry nodded slowly.

“They don’t happen as often now, but as you’ve seen, they can still be a problem. Sometimes things become too much and my mind can’t let go of it as easily.

“As soon as I was old enough, my father taught me how to defend myself. I think I was ten. As soon as I had proper gun, fist and knife skills, I was brought on to the road with him, and shortly after that, Gemma was left at home.

“Gemma was his little girl, and he always treated her as such. He knew that she was completely capable of being an amazing hunter, but he cherished her too much. He decided that she was best left at home, with our mother, to be a source of research. She loved to absorb knowledge, and she started keeping her journal shortly after she was home bound. She learned everything there was to know about everything. She’d ask the travelers staying at our house for their own accounts of things, and record their tips and tricks. She was brilliant.”

“Journal?” Niall asked.

“Yeah, it’s in the backseat, actually. I kept it. Comes in handy.”

Harry grinned as Niall unbuckled his seatbelt and maneuvered himself strategically to retrieve the leather-bound journal from the back seat of the Mustang. He set it in his lap and secured himself again, turning back to Harry. “Alright, carry on.”

“Right. So, meanwhile, I was out in the bush with my dear old dad. He was a man of few words, which could be nerve wracking after a while. I never knew what he was thinking, so I would always try that much harder to get something out of him. It was usually completely useless, but then there would be these times where he would sit down with me and give me a pat on the shoulder and I knew that he was proud. I drank my first beer with him on the hood of this car, actually.

“I know now that his silence was the aftermath of a slightly tortured soul. Hunting can do terrible things to a perfectly good mind.”

“This car was your father’s, then?” Niall ran a hand along the interior of the door, fingering the cracked vinyl.

Harry again nodded. “Paul’s house was our first stop when we moved here. He had been fixing this girl up and my dad bought it from him immediately. He also supplied us with our lovely RV until we had settled in to the house. My mum would drive that, which she hated, and my dad would lead in this.” Harry felt a grin pulling at his lip, as he gazed at the shiny dashboard of his car. “I learned how to drive in this thing.”

Niall listened to Harry’s story intently. He liked the sound of Harry’s family. There they were, a family of hunters, and yet they were surprisingly normal. Harry was still a boy looking to be accepted by his father, even if being accepted meant killing a demon instead of making his school’s footie team. There were definite parallels, with having his first beer and learning to drive. It felt like a relief, finally hearing his boyfriend’s back-story. He felt walls he hadn’t known about slowly crumbling as he became privy to such private information. They’d been ‘together’ for two months, and it was as if a veil had suddenly been lifted during the previous twenty-four hours.

Harry marched on. “Everything sort of carried on that way for a while. We’d call from the road and Gemma would grab her laptop and run a quick search for us. We’d make a stop at Paul’s when we were in the neighborhood, to see if he had anything new to share with us. The weeks we’d come home were the best, because there would always be an extravagant meal waiting to welcome us home, our table lined with people that we didn’t even know that well, and of course mum and Gem. It was an odd arrangement, but I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. Sure, I got homesick, and I got scared a lot, but in the end there was always a warm house to come home to at the end of a hunt.”

Harry fell silent and Niall realized that they had crossed in to Oregon. One more state to go and they would be in Washington, and soon after that they would be in Seattle. Niall felt his stomach twist as the realization of what they were doing hit him. They were going to save Louis, the slightly off-kilter young man that he’d met and had been briefly jealous of. He was in danger because of _vampires_ and they were on their way to do something about it. Well, Harry was. Niall highly suspected he’d be stuck in a hotel room somewhere wearing down a path in the carpet from his pacing.

“Should I continue?” Harry suddenly interrupted Niall’s thoughts.

“Hm?” Niall asked, rolling his head to look at the handsome man next to him.

“Would you like to hear more about my family?”

“Harry, I only want to know what you want to tell me. I’m not going to make you spill your guts.” Niall held out his hand, and Harry took his right one off of the steering wheel to grasp it. It had quickly become apparent to Niall weeks ago how affectionate Harry was. He loved to touch, and was very physical, when they were intimate, and even when they weren’t. Harry would always take his hand or slide an arm around his waist. Even in public Harry tended to be possessive of Niall, but it was always welcomed, Niall enjoying the touch of dominance.

“Louis’ mum was killed when he was only a baby.”

Niall inhaled sharply.

“His house caught fire, and burnt to the ground, but his neighbors were somehow able to save him. Paul said they had told him it was as if there was a clear path to his nursery, allowing them to grab him and carry him off. However, his mother burnt. He was handed over to Paul, who was a friend of his mum’s and had guardianship over him, and that was how he grew up.

“Louis’ father was a hunter who was killed by a werewolf in Doncaster before he was born. His mum escaped to America to get away from it all and to give Louis the best chance she could at a good life. Paul concluded that it was a demon that killed her. All of the omens were there.”

“That’s terrible!” Niall began, but Harry squeezed his hand to silence him.

“That very same demon killed my family when I was fifteen.”

Niall’s heart dropped. He’d been dreading the inevitable tragedy in Harry’s story.

“I was out getting chocolate for Gemma, and when I came home there were bright orange flames shooting up from the top floor. When I ran in I was greeted by the demon himself, standing at the bottom of the stairs. He had red eyes, and he only stayed long enough to give me a smile.

“The fire burned quick and hot, and it was as if it targeted each member of my family. They had all been trapped on the top floor, even though my father’s study where he spent most of his time was near the kitchen on the main floor. My mother had been doing laundry in the basement when I left. But no, they were all upstairs and there was very little of them left when the fire was finally put out.”

“Harry,” Niall said softly, watching as the brunette’s eyes welled with tears. They didn’t fall, though. “You don’t have to continue.”

“No, I want to!” Harry’s voice cracked. “I want to. I want you to know the family that I knew, and know more about them than just the fact that they were killed. They were people who lived and loved and I need to tell you.”

“Alright.”

Harry cleared his throat, blinking back the water in his eyes. “When I was allowed in to the house again all I grabbed was Gem’s journal from the den and my father’s car keys. One of his friends drove me to Paul’s, who was listed as my legal guardian as well in the event that _you know_ … He’s been the one constant in both Louis’ life and mine. He can be a right bastard sometimes, but he has a big heart, and he’s been like a father to us.”

“So Louis became a brother to you, then.” Niall supplied.

Harry nodded vigorously. “He’s important to me. We were so dependent on each other for so long… The fact that we don’t share blood doesn’t matter. We’re family.”

“I don’t… I don’t really know what to say, Harry.” Niall stared at his lap. Harry had lost his entire family, and Louis had as well. Niall had suspected that Harry and Louis went back quite a ways, but he had no idea that they were practically brothers. It made what they were doing so much more important. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t say that,” Harry said quickly. “Just… It was years ago. Louis doesn’t even know who his mother was, and I’ve had time to put all of this behind me. We’ve prepared ourselves and built a case around this demon. We’re slowly tracking down the son of a bitch that did this, and trying to determine why he’s still burning families.”

“You mean he’s still doing this sort of thing?” Niall gasped.

“Let’s not talk about it, okay?” Harry’s voice was a bit pleading and Niall immediately zipped his lips. He would learn more when the time came, he was sure.

At that moment, though, he clutched Harry’s hand tightly and flipped open Gemma’s journal.

“She gets a bit dramatic sometimes, I’ll just warn you,” Harry said with a smirk.

As Niall read, he took note of a few things. One: Gemma was a lovely girl. She was funny, he could tell from her witty entries. At the same time she was still a teenager, and sometimes mentioned boys she’d met on the road with her father, and how he would always shoo them away.

Two: she made mention of Harry quite often, like how he had helped their father on a case, or how she was teaching him all she knew about rituals or things called ‘hex bags’. One story in particular stood out because of how precious it was. Gemma’s writing was quite messy as she shared how Harry had cried after helping his first vengeful spirit find peace and successfully cross over when he was only ten. He had held it in until they were back at their hotel, and then as soon as their father had ducked out to fetch some late dinner, he had cried in to her shoulder.

No matter how annoyed or frustrated she became, it was clear that Gemma Styles loved her little brother dearly, and that she was so proud of him. It warmed Niall’s heart, and simultaneously broke it to know that she was gone. When she was eighteen, her entries came to an abrupt end. On one page she was talking about a cute hunter that they were boarding, and the next page was blank. Niall stared at the yellowed paper, feeling a bit empty.

Niall then began skimming the pages of notes on the various creatures the Style’s family had encountered, and some that they hadn’t. Gemma was detailed, and even supplied some doodles and diagrams for some of her explanations. Some of the content that she had entered twisted Niall’s stomach. Some of the monsters were too horrifying to imagine.

Niall closed the book when the sky outside was too dark for him to keep reading. He blinked owlishly and turned his attention back to Harry. The brunette had been silent the entire time Niall had been submerged in the teenage literature, and his eyes remained glued to the road.

Niall squeezed his hand and tried not to worry about him.

———

Harry’s eyes stung, and his body felt weak, but he kept a steady hand on the steering wheel.

He’d felt his emotions get the best of him when he’d told Niall about the night his family was murdered. He was surprised that, even seven years later, he was still just as torn up about it. It had hit him then that he’d likely carry the weight of their deaths for a long time.

Harry was startled from his thoughts when Niall squeezed his hand and he eagerly returned the small show of affection. He was overwhelmingly grateful to have Niall seated beside him, even if he feared for the blonds’ safety once they arrived at their destination. He’d do everything in his power to protect him.

Despite Harry’s protesting, Niall forced himself to stay awake, switching between sticking his head out of the window and blasting loud music throughout the car. By the time they rolled in to their chosen roadside motel in Seattle at one in the morning, Niall was just barely hanging on.

They checked in and retrieved the necessities from the car. Harry went straight for the washroom in the cramped room to wash his face and scrub away the grime of a twenty-two hour non-stop drive. He brushed his teeth, and made himself feel human again.

“We should get some sleep.” Niall appeared in the doorway, having changed in to a white tee and sweatpants. Harry liked a sleepy, cuddly Niall.

“I think I’m going to putter around for a bit, get some things ready and all,” Harry replied, squeezing past his boyfriend to get back in to the main room.

“Harry, you’re running on empty. You need to sleep, or else something terrible is going to happen tomorrow when you go to help Louis.” Niall walked up behind him, sliding his arms around his waist and pressing himself against his back.

“I just… I have things to do-“

“You’re no good to Louis if you’re dead.”

Harry sighed, letting Niall strip him of his shirt and pants. They shut off the lights and crawled in to bed, and though it was a hard mattress at a rather shitty motel, to Harry it felt like a little piece of heaven. Niall took his place beside him, his head against his chest and his arm draped over his abdomen. Before completely settling in, Harry set the alarm on his phone for five in the morning. That gave him plenty of time to wake up before the sun and prepare.

———

The old building that housed the nest was in an industrial district. Some of the buildings were still in use, but the majority had fallen in to disrepair and had become decrepit. It was the perfect place for vampires to hide.

He had brought all the essentials with him without bringing anything too bulky: he had a couple syringes of dead man’s blood tucked in his leather jacket, a machete hanging from his belt, and his usual knives tucked in his sleeve and boot. They couldn’t do much, but he felt better having them with him. Dead man’s blood acted as a poison to vampires. Once it entered them, it slowly paralyzed them, rendering them helpless. It required getting quite up close and personal, but Harry was going to take his chances.

He had risen at five as he had planned, making sure not to wake Niall. He knew the blond would be livid, but Harry didn’t have the heart to wake him up. It just gave him more of a reason to get the job done and make it back to Niall in one piece. As if on cue, his phone buzzed in his pocket, signaling he had a new text message.

_You son of a bitch._

Harry smiled and typed a quick response back, then turned off his phone so that it didn’t give him away prematurely or cause him any unnecessary problems.

 _Be back soon_. _x._

Vampires weren’t afraid of the sun. They didn’t burn up in it, or turn in to bats, and they sure as hell didn’t sparkle. The sun irritated them. They could go out in it, but any exposed skin tended to itch and hurt, their eyes being especially sensitive. Thus, they tended to go wild all night and then sleep away the day.

Harry walked the perimeter of the building, looking for the best way in. There was no door better than the other, so he chose at random and acted as stealthy as possible. He channeled his inner Bond.

The inside of the building was what he expected. He made his way down a dark hallway, which opened in to a larger room. Upon entering the room, though, he felt a presence behind him. He whipped his machete out of his belt and spun around, effectively slicing the head of a vamp clean off. He watched the body collapse, the head rolling away. His heart hammered in his chest, adrenaline pumping.

Behind him, there was a strangled cry. He turned to find a blond female vampire in the doorway, staring at the body on the floor. Harry sighed and ran at her, blade raised at shoulder level. She never even had a chance.

As Harry continued to make his way deeper in to the building, he encountered more and more vamps. They were materializing out of the woodwork, coming at him from all directions. He was run ragged, using the blood and knives he had to take care of them, while keeping a safe distance from their teeth. Harry suspected that some of the females were newborns because of how unprepared they were for his assault.

What Harry didn’t understand was why none of the vampires in the nest were sleeping.  They were all very much awake, and spread out as if… as if they were _waiting_ for him.

A growl startled Harry from his thoughts, though before he could react, he was struck in the back of the head. He went down on one knee, crying out in pain. He rolled down on to his back to keep the vamp in his sights, and as it crowded over him, he jabbed it in the leg with his last syringe of poison. It screeched and toppled over, limbs freezing up. Harry blinked to keep his vision straight and wobbled on to his knees, raising his blade and effectively severing the head of the creature.

He crouched there for a moment, breathing heavily. His head was _throbbing_.

He carried on through the continuous hallways, hoping he was making progress and not just circling around. He never encountered any of his slaughtered vamps, though, so he pegged that as a good thing.

He reached a door that led out in to a large warehouse. There were wooden poles throughout the room, with a web of steel beams lying across the top of them to support the roof. He walked slowly through the open room, attempting to silence the echoing of his boots on the concrete floor. There were couches and tables, and various dirty mattresses and bedding all around the large room. Make shift curtains were hung between pillars, blocking his view of the entire room.

Harry’s head continued to pound, but he kept focused. Somewhere up ahead of him, he heard a slight scuffle and a whimper. He took off, no longer concerned with his element of surprise. As he ducked under a curtain, he was stopped dead in his tracks.

A tall, gangly vampire was stood a few feet away from him. He had Louis in a chokehold.

Harry took a moment to check Louis over. His usually radiant skin was pale. His bare arms were littered with bruises, he had a split lip, and he had a deep, unhealed head wound. He was conscious but limp, the fight completely gone from him.

“Nice of you to join us. _Harry_ , is it?”

Harry’s eyes traveled up to meet those of the vampire, who was smiling back at him. He looked a bit like a rock star, and Harry hated to admit that they were dressed eerily similar. Harry definitely pulled it off better, though. This vampire looked as if he were trapped in the wrong era, trying desperately to fit in to the image of the world around him. He was probably very old, at least a century, and he was most definitely an Alpha.

“How the fuck do you know my name?” Harry snarled.

The vamps’ smile never faltered. “Sweet cheeks here didn’t know enough to keep his phone at home. What a surprise it was to see a heroic little message from you saying how you were coming to rescue him.”

Harry bit his lip. His element of surprise had been ruined before he’d even begun. What was odd to him, though, was why they had kept Louis alive. It would have been just as easy to get rid of him and then jump Harry when he arrived to save the day. No, there was something else going on.

“I can see the gears slowly turning,” the vampire teased. “You probably don’t care, but my name is Hector. Just in case you need more names to call me in your mind, I thought you might like to know my real one.”

“I don’t want to know anything about you,” Harry growled, raising his machete covered in the blood of the fallen vampires behind him.

“I see you met my family,” Hector’s smile finally soured. “And I see you annihilated them.”

“All in a days’ work,” Harry replied, wiping the blood on his pant leg.

“I worked hard making all those perfect beings you just cut down, you know. How would you like it if I destroyed _your_ family?” The vampire hissed, tightening his hold on Louis. The boy coughed and wheezed in his grip.

Harry tried not to show his fear. “I’m afraid someone already beat you to it.”

“Ah yes! I think I heard that through the grapevine. Two little orphan hunters, plagued with daddy issues. Your futures are not looking good, boys,” the creature whispered the last part in to Louis’ ear, the shorter man gritting his teeth. He still had yet to utter a word.

Harry took a step towards them, but Hector put his hand up to stop him.

“I wouldn’t come any closer, pretty. I’ve got all the power, here. I’ve got plans for you boys. You’re going to get a taste of your own medicine.” Hector brought his own wrist to his mouth. Harry watched as his fangs extended, sinking in to his skin. Blood began to pool and trickle out. “You, Harry, are going to die tonight at the hands of a vampire.” He removed his arm from around Louis’ neck, and instead grabbed his jaw, wrenching his mouth open. “And that vampire is going to be your dear friend here.”

“ _No_!” Harry surged forward as Hector held his wrist in front of Louis’ face, his blood slowly dripping down in to the waiting mouth. Louis made a feeble attempt at fighting back, but nothing he did could stop the toxic substance from entering his system. He coughed and choked as he involuntarily swallowed his own end.

Harry got tunnel vision as one of the people dearest to his heart was turned in to a vampire in front of his eyes. It was like a nightmare that he couldn’t get out of.

When Hector decided he was finished, he shoved Louis forward, letting the boy drop on to his hands and knees. Harry stared, wanting desperately to go to him, but the more logical side of his brain reminded him that there was still an alpha vampire a few feet away from him.

“You son of a bitch,” Harry felt his blood start to boil as his adrenaline wore off.

Louis was a _vampire_.

“ _You son of a bitch!_ ” Harry repeated, screaming it as he dashed forward, machete raised.

He’d look back on that moment and realize his mistakes. He acted out too quickly, and didn’t assess his situation. He acted on rage alone, and didn’t put any thought in to how he was going to get out of it. He wanted the Alpha dead, and the only way he knew how in that heated moment was to go in guns blazing.

It was over before it had even begun.

Hector easily deflected his assault and retaliated, throwing Harry backwards violently with his superior strength. Harry flew in to a nearby pole, striking his head as it broke his fall. He crumpled to the concrete floor, the world around him spinning. The last thing he saw before he succumbed to the darkness was Louis laying a few feet away from him, soaked in sweat and convulsing on the floor.

———

Hotel rooms always sounded like so much fun. Getting away, staying in a room that wasn’t your own, having a maid service and a television with all of the good channels… It was a sort of oasis; at least that’s what Niall had always told himself. However, waiting in a hotel room while your boyfriend was out fighting vampires sort of put a damper on the entire experience.

Niall had channel surfed for three hours, watching bits and pieces of all sorts of programs, though nothing could hold his attention for long enough. He had tried napping, though he had only managed a measly half an hour before he was wide-awake again and staring at the stained ceiling above him. He’d even tried to delve back in to Gemma’s journal, but he found he wasn’t in a good enough state of mind to learn about monsters.

Finally, Niall headed to the sad little diner attached to the motel. He could always eat. Ultimately, though, once his plate of food was sitting in front of him, looking delicious and smelling fantastic, he had no appetite. Thus, he sat in silence staring at his unresponsive phone on the table beside his fork. **_Be back soon. x._**

“You look a little lost.”

A voice beside him made Niall jump. His waitress was standing over him. She was young, with a pretty face and a lazy ponytail.

“Nah, I’m just waiting for something,” Niall replied, picking up his utensils to make it look as if he were working away on his meal.

“You don’t have to pretend you’re going to eat that,” she continued, leaning against the edge of the booth opposite him.

“No, no I am-“

“A lot of troubled souls pass through this diner, if you can imagine.” She smiled sympathetically. “This isn’t the classiest of places to stay, so of course I wait on a lot of people who are down on their luck, or who are at a crossroads in their lives. You don’t seem so desperate, but you are definitely not all right.”

Niall stared at the girl for a moment. She looked to be seventeen, but her wisdom surpassed that age by a mile. She was an old soul. She’d probably seen her share of heart ache, as Niall had. “I’m fine, thank you.”

She gave him a smile and turned on her heel. Just as she was out of reach, though, Niall stopped her.

“How long does hunting usually take?” He blurted.

“What was that?” She asked, raising a delicately plucked eyebrow.

Niall shook his head. “Nothing. Never mind.”

As soon as she had disappeared from view, he threw down enough money to cover his untouched meal and a generous tip and made his exit.

When the orange light from the setting sun filled the stuffy motel room, Niall made the decision that something had gone horribly wrong. He sat up in bed and pulled out Gemma’s journal once more. He rifled through it, page after page, until he landed on one in particular that he remembered from the road. It was a detailed list of almost two-dozen important phone numbers to the Style’s family.

Niall only needed one.

“ _Hello_?” I deep, Irish brogue crackled through Niall’s weak cell connection.

Niall’s voice caught.

“ _Who is this?_ ” The voice continued, sounding not at all pleased.

“Hi, um, yes, is this Paul?” Niall stammered, fiddling with the threadbare bedspread.

“ _Who are you and how did you get this number?_ ”

“Um, my name is Niall. I… I got your number from Gemma Styles’ journal?” The conversation wasn’t going nearly as smoothly as Niall had hoped.

The silence that followed was deafening. Then, finally, Paul spoke, though Niall was startled by his words:

“ _Harry never made it back._ ”

Niall exhaled sharply. “No, um… I wasn’t sure how long he might take. He never said anything about it… Maybe they just went out for a drink or something afterward, right? Look, I probably shouldn’t have bothered you, I’m sorry-“

“ _The boys like their beer, but Harry would never leave you sitting in a motel room waiting on him. He’s got a thick skull, but you’re important to the little bastard._ ”

Niall felt his heart swell at Paul’s words. “Did he tell you that?”

He heard a heavy sigh. “ _I’m not interested in gushing about that poof’s romantic side. We’ve got a problem on our hands, and I’d like to fix it._ ”

Niall’s face burned, even though no one was there to witness his embarrassment. “Right, right. Sorry. So… Will you come help, then?”

There was a humorless chuckle. “ _I wish I could, kid, but I’m a couple states away. By the time I got to you, both those boys would be long dead. I’m afraid you’re going to have to handle this one._ ”

Niall choked on his saliva, his heart beginning to race. “I don’t… I’m not a hunter-“

“ _If you want Louis and Harry safe and sound, you’re going to have to take the lead on this one, Niall. None of my buddies are anywhere near Seattle, or else I would send someone else. You’ve read Gem’s journal, right?”_

Niall took deep breaths, running his fingers through his hair. His hands were shaking. “Yes. I read some parts.”

_“Then you’ve got all you need.”_

Paul went over the basics with him again, even though he had read all that Harry’s sister had written about vampires. They were fast, strong, and the only way to take them out was to decapitate them.

“I’m going to need dead man’s blood? I have to _kill_ someone and take their-“

_“No, you idiot, Styles always keeps a stash in the trunk of the Mustang. That’s another thing: All the weapons you are ever going to need are stashed in that trunk. When you get to the warehouse, find that car and arm yourself. Shut your phone off, and for god’s sake, be quiet. Vampires’ senses are heightened by a thousand. They can hear a mouse from a mile away. It’s unlikely that you’ll be able to sneak up on them, but you can at least buy yourself more time.”_

“I don’t think I can do this.” Niall sat down on the bed, having changed in to black trousers and a long-sleeved t-shirt. It made him feel a little stealthier, though from what Paul was saying, he had no chance at a blind side. Paul’s voice boomed through the speaker on his phone, which lay on the bed beside him.

“ _You don’t have a choice. This is your life now. I didn’t want it to begin this way for you, and I can guarantee that Harry didn’t either, but it’s now or never. Time is running out.”_

———

Harry’s senses came back to him one by one. First, he heard heavy breathing somewhere in front of him. Second, he could feel that his arms had been pulled uncomfortably behind his back, tethering him to a solid object. Third, he tasted the metallic taste of his own blood in his mouth, and smelled the iron lingering in the air. The last to come was his vision, and when he finally cracked open his eyes to the dimly lit room, they landed on his brother’s prone form and it all flooded back to him.

_Hector had fed Louis his blood. Louis was turning in to a vampire._

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

Harry jumped as Hector breathed in to his ear. He turned to glare at the vampire and the room tilted violently, his head throbbing from the blows it had received. He was so unfocused that he hadn’t even sensed the vamp approach him.

“Pretty boy here is going to make a lovely addition to my family, since you slaughtered the last one. It always helps when they’re physically appealing. It’s easier to lure away the innocent when you’ve got a pretty face. But I’m sure you know all about that, mm?” Hector rose to his full height and wandered off out of Harry’s line of sight. “I’m going to let my little pixie cook for a while and get his legs under him. See how long it takes for his new hunger to set in.”

Harry heard the sound of the doors behind him closing.

“Louis!” He yelled immediately, struggling with the ropes that bound him. He hoped for a shot of adrenaline to distract from the pain in his head.

“Harry?” Louis whined, head tilting in Harry’s direction. His face was sickly pale and dripping with sweat. His eyes were bloodshot and feverish. The vampire blood now coursing through his veins was slowly poisoning him.

“Louis, I’m so sorry,” Harry choked out, completely helpless as he watched his best friend slip away from him. “It wasn’t supposed to end this way.”

“Harry, I’m so _hungry_ ,” Louis gasped, back arching off of the floor. He rolled on to his stomach and rose on to his hands and knees shakily. He looked in Harry’s direction, but his eyes were unseeing. He took in a lung full of air and his entire body quaked. “All I can smell is your blood. It’s everywhere.”

“Louis, fight it!” Harry yelled, continuing to struggle. The ropes cut in to his wrists, releasing the smell of more blood in to the air.

“What is there to fight, Harry?” Louis said softly, turning to face him. “This is what I am now. You know there’s no going back from this. You either kill me, or I kill you, and I can’t say that the odds are really in your favor right now.”

“Louis, no…” Harry trailed off, watching as his brother continued to breathe in the scent of his blood. “You don’t want to do this. You’ll never forgive yourself.” He pleaded with Louis as the shorter boy wrestled with the war going on in his head.

“It’s consuming me. I don’t… I don’t think I could stop myself if I tried. I have no control over it,” Louis hissed, climbing up on to his weak legs. He made his way towards Harry as if he were being pulled against his will. “I can hear your pulse.”

“Lou…”

Harry was overcome by an onslaught of different emotions. He was unashamed to admit to himself that he was afraid, but more than that was the sadness settling in the bottom of his stomach. He felt sorrow for his brother, standing over him in the state he was in, torn between the thirst he felt and the human still fighting within him.

Harry thought of Paul, who would never get to see either of them again. The rough man acted like he didn’t care sometimes, but at the end of the day he was their surrogate father. All that he had taught them, all the knowledge he had passed on… All for this. It all ended in some warehouse, the two of them falling victim to one of the very things they were trained to hunt down and kill.

And then there was Niall, who was sitting in a dirty motel room thinking the absolute worst. Terrible things were likely going through the blonds’ head, unable to get in contact with either of them. Niall would be left alone again. Once more, the person he had put his faith in and let himself trust was going to vanish and never return, leaving him abandoned in a strange city. Harry had let Niall down. What mattered, though, was that he was safe.

Louis suddenly cried out and fell to his knees again, clawing at his chest. He turned his gaze on Harry, and the brunette watched his irises blink from blue to gold. Louis squinted, no doubt sensitive of the old florescent light swinging over their heads.

“Louis, promise me you’ll kill Hector after you’re done with me. He’ll just keep turning innocent people and growing his family.” Harry kept his voice even as he addressed Louis. He didn’t want his brother to easily forget his words. “Then you need to go to Paul and let him finish this.”

“Harry!” Louis gasped.

“We agreed we would do this. We agreed that if one of us were to get to a point of no return that we would deal with it. If you run from this, you’ll live a half-life. You’re going to hate yourself, and you’ll leave a trail of bodies behind you.”

Louis let out a sob, fisting his own t-shirt. “I don’t want this, Harry. I don’t want to be this.”

“It’s alright, Lou,” Harry’s voice dropped to a whisper. “I don’t want this either, but this is how it’s got to be. Just promise me no one else will get hurt. You have to promise me.”

———

Niall slammed the trunk of Harry’s Mustang that he had found parked up the street from the appropriate building that housed the nest. He gripped the blade he had chosen tightly, and tucked a few syringes of dead man’s blood in to the pocket in his pants. He breathed in the cool night air, trying to calm his nerves and keep a straight head.

He could do it. He’d made the decision to follow Harry in to a world of monsters and demons, and it was time to face it head on. It was what his life had become.

The warehouse was eerily quiet when he entered, which wasn’t what he was expecting. There was a putrid smell lingering in the air, and as he stumbled on the body of the first headless vamp, he understood why. As he continued along, senses focused, he encountered many more dead vampires. It was a good sign, meaning that Harry had obviously made it that far. He tried not to think of each body as a human being, which was hard. At one point or another, every one of those creatures had been a living, breathing, loving individual with dreams and aspirations.

The world was cruel. It wasn’t enough that people had to worry about poverty, or famine or disease… at any given moment, they could be possessed, or ripped apart, or drained of their blood. It was unfair that people were allowed the false sense of security that if they worked hard, made money, and built a foundation to stand on, that they could win and actually succeed in life.

“Well, what have we here?”

Niall froze when a deep voice spoke from behind him. He had let himself become so distracted that he hadn’t sensed the threat lurking behind him. He gripped the handle of his blade tightly, though his body refused to move. He wanted to turn around, to fight like he’d promised Paul, but he was completely immobile.

“Why so tense, love? Take a wrong turn or something? That shiny weapon is telling me otherwise.”

Niall felt a presence come up behind him, and still he couldn’t move. A cold hand ran up his arm, and Niall could feel the chill through his shirt. It felt like his heart was going to jump right out of his chest.

“You look like a hunter, but you aren’t one, are you? You’re playing the big man, but you’re not delivering. Hunters don’t tremble, darlin’. Hunters don’t cower and freeze around a vamp. Hunters are cocky little shits on a power high. You’re just playing dress-up, aren’t you?”

Niall remained silent, his vocal chords completely betraying him. All the confidence and drive he had had back at the car had left him. He had never experienced the level of fear he was feeling. No amount of preparation could prepare him for being face to face with a creature that could tear him apart with his bare hands.

The vampire finally entered Niall’s line of sight as he circled him. “You are a pretty little thing, aren’t you? So many pretty boys in my house tonight.”

Niall managed a glance at the being in front of him. He wasn’t sure what he had been expecting, but a young Mick Jagger wasn’t it. The pearly white fangs told Niall that it was indeed a vampire, though. He worked to maintain his hold on his blade even with his sweaty palms, trying to wrap his head around the fact that he was standing in front of a creature that up until that day, he’d thought was mythical.

The vampire gave him a smile, his teeth glinting in the low light. “Lucky for you, I’m throwing a little party tonight. Care to join?” He suddenly grabbed Niall in a death grip and forced him down the hallway, wrenching the machete from his hand in the process. Niall tripped over another corpse as he was dragged. He could hear his blood pounding in his ears. The hand on Niall’s arm was ice cold, and it was clamped on so tightly that it was bound to leave a bruise.

“Not very talkative, are you?” The smooth voice muttered. Niall opened his mouth to reply, but all that he could manage was a frightened squeak, which was rewarded with a chuckle. “You are too precious, doll face.”

They reached a set of double doors, and Niall could see a large open space on the other side of them. He was shoved forward roughly so that the vampire was at his back. The hairs on the back of his neck stood at attention, his skin prickling.

“Time to make our grand entrance.”

Niall was pushed through the doors. He stumbled, but the vampire’s tight grip on him didn’t allow him to fall. The room on the other side of the doors was set up as a makeshift home. As he was guided around some curtains, his eyes landed on a terrifying scene.

Harry had his back to him, and was tied to a pole. His wrists were rubbed raw and bleeding from fighting against his restraints. Louis was kneeling in front of him, but on further inspection, Niall noticed something off about the boy. He looked sick, and his irises were bright gold. When Louis finally saw him, his eyes grew wide. “No,” he choked.

Harry began to struggle, trying to crane his neck to see behind him. “Louis, what is it? What’s going on?”

Niall was shoved forward some more. “I found another guest creeping around our house, Louis! I thought I’d invite him to our little gathering.” The vampire grinned. “It’s not fair if you’re the only one that gets to eat tonight.”

Niall finally entered Harry’s line of sight. He watched the brunette’s face fall. He visibly deflated, looking at Niall with a horrified expression. “No,” he breathed. “This… Niall, what are you _doing_ here?”

“I’m so sorry!” Niall finally managed to find his voice. He heard a mocking gasp from behind him.

“He speaks!” The vampire clapped him hard on the back of the neck, causing Niall to grunt.

“What were you _thinking_?” Harry continued. “Why did you come here?”

“I was trying to help! I called Paul and he told me what to do… But it all went to hell. I’m so sorry… Are you… are you alright?”

Before Harry could open his mouth to answer, the vampire leaned in close to Niall’s ear. The blond shivered and subtly tried to pull his face away from the creature. “That’s a silly question, pretty. Not a very bright boy, are you?” Niall felt a hand slide down his arm, petting him. “It’s obvious that one of your friends is tied up and beaten, while the other one is slowly developing a taste for his blood.”

“Get your hands off of him!” Harry interrupted the uncomfortable exchange, his voice rough.

“Oh my, it seems I’ve hit a nerve. Niall, is it?” The vampire asked, blatantly ignoring Harry’s warning as he continued to explore Niall’s body. “I think you’re a little more important to our Harry than I originally thought.”

“Harry said to leave him alone, Hector!” Louis suddenly growled, stumbling to his feet. He swayed violently, but quickly righted himself.

“How are you feeling, pal?” _Hector_ asked, draping an arm around Niall’s shoulders. The blond took deep breaths to try and calm his racing heart. “You don’t look too well.”

“You have some nerve,” Louis continued. “You’re going to pay for doing this to me, and for hurting Harry and – ah!” Louis’ sentence ended in a yell. His jaw fell open and Niall watched as two sharp fangs extended from his gums. Niall held his breath at the realization that Louis was turning in to a vampire. Things had gone more horribly than he’d ever imagined.

Hector seemed pleased. “Your transformation is coming along nicely. How’s that thirst, hm?”

“It’s not as strong as my intent to kill you!” Louis lunged forward, though as soon as he did, Hector fisted Niall’s hair, wrenching his head back and exposing the long line of his neck. The older vampire exposed his own fangs, running his nose against the skin over Niall’s jugular vein. The blond bit back a sob, eyes locked on Louis’.

“Louis, stop!” Harry yelled, fighting against the ropes around his wrists. “He’ll kill him!”

“Listen to your friend, newborn,” Hector hissed. “One more move and I make myself a traditional Irish meal.”

Harry immediately ceased his movements, and Louis barely breathed. They were at a standstill.

Niall couldn’t see a successful conclusion to their situation. There was a slim chance that all three of them would get out of the warehouse alive. Louis was a vampire, a little more of his humanity slipping away as the minutes ticked by. Harry was rendered useless, and Niall himself could barely form sentences in the presence of the vampire that had him in the palm of his hand. Things seemed rather hopeless.

Niall thought briefly about his life. He thought of his struggles and his triumphs, that all suddenly lead up to the moment where his like would be drained by a _vampire_.

It was then, however, that Niall remembered the syringe full of dead man’s blood still safely tucked in his pocket. Hector had him by the hair and the arm, leaving his other arm completely free to retrieve his weapon. Hector didn’t know about it, and it would be simple to catch him off guard.

Niall chanced a look at Harry. He looked completely defeated. Even when he had been lying on the floor in Niall’s house, bleeding from claw wounds, he’d still had that fire, that spark… But in that moment, Harry looked as if he were dead already. He’d given up.

Niall wouldn’t let him give up. They’d come too far together for it to end that way.

Slowly, Niall reached in to the pocket of his pants. Louis saw what he was doing and let out a snarl, effectively causing a distraction for Hector. In return, the other vampire growled back and gripped Niall tighter. Niall stilled his movements, took a couple deep breaths, and then continued what he was doing. His fingers circled around the glass cylinder and gripped it tightly. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. All at once he slid the syringe from its place and plunged it in to the leg of the vampire pressed to his back. His thumb found the plunger and he pushed it down, injecting the entire supply of blood in to the creature’s system.

Hector let out a growl, losing his grip on Niall as the poison spread through his body. Niall spun around and gave him a shove, knocking the vampire to the ground.

“Niall!” Harry gasped. “Be careful.”

Louis had crumpled again, another wave of fire burning through his veins as he continued to change.

“You little son of a bitch,” Hector choked. “Didn’t think you had it in you, doll face.”

Niall stared down at the immobilized vampire. He never would have guessed that the blood of a dead man could do so much harm to a being so strong. He spotted the blade he’d brought with him lying a few feet away and he picked it up, turning it over in his hand.

“Come untie me, Niall,” Harry called. “I’ll take care of him, just get me out of these ropes.”

Niall continued to stare at the bloodsucker on the ground. He had been reduced to a helpless infant. Niall took a step towards him, feeling his anger boil.

“You going to finish me, dolly?” Hector egged him on, grinning despite his obvious disadvantage. “You going to chop my head off like a hero? You feel _powerful_ , do you?”

Niall tightened his grip on the handle of the machete.

“Niall, listen to me,” Harry tried again. “You can’t do this. Don’t go through with it. Let me get rid of him. I don’t want you to have his blood on your hands.”

“He’s a vampire, Harry,” Niall finally answered him, turning to look at his boyfriend. “Look what he did to you. Look what he did to _Louis_! All the people that he’s killed over the years-“

“And you need to let me handle him!” Harry snapped. “I’m the hunter. This is _my_ job. You aren’t even supposed to be here tonight! So drop the knife and back away.”

“Does he always treat you like his little bitch?” Hector goaded. “Do you always do what your man asks of you? Do you just bend over and let him-“

“ _Shut up_!” Niall screamed, pressing the blade against the vampire’s neck. Niall could hear his own blood rushing in his ears, adrenaline pumping through him. His hand had a slight tremor.

“Niall, please,” Harry pleaded.

“I’m going to do this.” Niall said firmly. “I’m part of this life now, I have to face it eventually.” Niall raised the blade high in to the air.

The creature on the floor looked him straight in the eyes. “You don’t have the _balls_!”

Niall swung his arm down, taking off the vampire’s head in one fatal stroke and silencing him for eternity. The head rolled away and the body went slack, thumping lifeless against the floor. Niall stared at it, then looked down at the blood that had sprayed on to his clothes. He suddenly felt sick as he came down from his adrenaline high. He let the knife drop from his hand as his knees became weak. “Oh my God…”

“Niall, baby, look at me,” Harry said softly, earning Niall’s attention. “Come here.”

The blond tripped over his own feet as he made his way over to his boyfriend. He fumbled with the ropes around his wrists, and once Harry was free he wrapped Niall in his arms, pulling him in to his lap. It was then that Niall realized how much he was shaking. “You were amazing,” Harry said softly, trying to calm him down. “You did so good.”

Niall didn’t respond, though he could feel his heart rate becoming steadier as Harry held him. Moments later, though, Harry began to move. “I need you to sit here. Don’t move, and don’t go near Louis.”

It was then that Niall was reminded of the threat still at hand.

Harry struggled to stand up after having been tied down for an entire day. He slowly made his way forward, coming to a stop beside Louis’ weak form. He sunk to his knees.

“Harry!” Louis gasped, reaching for him.

“I’m here, Lou,” Harry’s voice cracked as he grasped his brother’s hand. “I’m here.”

“Kill me, Harry,” the older boy continued. “You need to kill me.”

“I know,” Harry replied quietly. Niall couldn’t see his face, but he could hear the tears in his voice. “That’s what we promised, right?”

“Right.”

Niall felt tears well in his own eyes as he observed the exchange between the two siblings. They had come so far, and overcome so much, only for it to end so abruptly. Niall and Harry had raced to the rescue, crossing multiple states, and Niall had faced and killed a _vampire_ and yet it wasn’t soon enough to save Louis’ life.

Niall pulled his phone out of his pocket and quickly made a call.

_“Niall?”_

“Paul,” Niall choked.

_“Where are you? What happened? Are the boys okay?”_

Niall took a deep, shuddering breath. “Louis is turning in to a vampire!” He sobbed, his tears finally spilling out on to his cheeks. “I don’t know what to do!”

There was a static silence on the other end of the phone. Niall watched as Louis sat up, looking at his brother hungrily. Harry remained where he was, still clutching Louis’ hand.

 _“Son of a bitch.”_ Paul finally spoke.

Niall was only half paying attention to his fellow Irishman’s curses, too focused on the scene playing out in front of him. Harry was completely still as Louis moved closer to him. The shorter boy had Harry’s arm in a death grip as he leaned in towards his neck, breathing in his scent. Harry flinched.

 _“Did Louis feed yet?_ ” Paul’s gruff voice snapped Niall back in to focus.

“Did he what?”

_“Did he feed? Has he tasted blood?”_

Niall tried not to feel squeamish. “No, he hasn’t. Though, he wants to.”

_“Good, I’ve got something we need to try.”_

As it turned out, Paul had heard a rumor of a myth of a legend that said a human could be saved from damnation by drinking the blood of the vamp that had turned them, again, given that the human affected hadn’t yet acted on their bloodlust. He’d never seen it in action, and hadn’t heard results one way or another, but frankly they had nothing to lose.

Louis had to be restrained while Harry and Niall prepared the ritual and Harry spoke the required latin. His eyes were bright gold, and his fangs were gleaming. He was hissing and fighting against the ropes that Harry had bound him with.

“You ready?” Harry asked as Niall took the rusty paint can containing some of Hector’s blood from him. The blond nodded and Harry carefully held Louis’ mouth open, Niall force-feeding him the metallic liquid. Louis choked and writhed, and ultimately went limp against his restraints when all of the blood was safely ingested.

The minutes stretched on as they waited for some sort of response. Harry reached over and grasped Niall’s hand tightly, never taking his eyes off of his brother.

“Louis?” Harry called, his voice small. They heard a groan.

As Niall watched, he swore that a bit of color began to creep back in to Louis’ skin. When he finally lifted his head and blinked his eyes open, his glimmering irises were melting back in to his regular baby blues. He bared his teeth as his fangs retracted and disappeared. Harry collapsed on to his knees, hugging Louis as close as he could.

“I thought I was going to lose you,” he whispered, though Niall still heard.

Louis made a weak attempt at a cheeky grin. “You can’t be rid of me that easily.”

———

They managed to pull some strings and move to an equally seedy but larger motel room, with two beds to allow for the addition of Louis.

Niall stood in front of the mirror under the harsh fluorescent lights in the bathroom. He looked at his reflection. He didn’t look any different, but he felt it. He felt older. More tired. Maybe it was just the stress, all of the terror and emotional turmoil he had gone through, but the day had aged him.

He jumped when Harry appeared in the mirror behind him. The brunette shut the bathroom door and crossed the small room to him, sliding his arms around his waist and pulling him back against his chest.

“Louis is asleep,” he said softly, trying not to disturb the peaceful atmosphere. Niall nodded and lifted his t-shirt, Harry taking over and pulling it over his head for him. Once he was free, he returned to looking at his reflection, more specifically the vampire blood still clinging to his neck and hands.

“Come on.” Harry guided Niall over to the shower stall, stripping him of the rest of his clothes as well as his own. The hot water felt good as Niall was pulled under the stream. He felt the tension leave his muscles and he became pliable in his boyfriends arms. Harry took advantage and began to scrub his skin with the mediocre complimentary soap, removing all traces of the day. “Are you okay?” He mumbled, his voice deep and impossibly sexy.

“I think so,” Niall replied, combing his wet hair off of his face with his fingers. He ran his hands all over Harry’s warm, wet skin, his need for contact suddenly difficult to control.

Harry reached the part of Niall’s arm that was stained dark purple from bruises where Hector had gripped him too tightly. Harry smoothed the soap over them, trying in vain to wash them away. They weren’t going to go away so easily, but they would heal in time.

“When I was trapped and Louis was turning in front of me, all I could think about was how you were going to be alone. You would be abandoned again, but the important thing was that you were safe.” Harry whispered in his ear as he continued to massage soap in to his skin. “But then when he dragged you in to that room… God, I felt so helpless. All that kept racing through my mind was how I was about to lose everyone that I loved all over again.”

Niall took a step back and locked eyes with Harry after he uttered the last few words. “Harry, you…” He started but then stopped. Harry gave him a small nod and Niall’s heart jumped in to his throat. He fisted his hands in his boyfriend’s brown curls and pulled him in, devouring his lips. Harry reacted quickly, hoisting Niall up and pressing him in to the shower wall. Niall locked his ankles around Harry’s waist, his hands struggling to find purchase on his slippery skin.

“I love you,” Harry groaned, sinking his blunt nails in to Niall’s hips. “Is that alright?”

“Yes!” Niall gasped, rutting his hips against Harry’s. “God, yes. Me too. I love you too.”

Using some of the complimentary lotion from the motel, Harry slicked himself up and wasted no time in sliding in to Niall, unprepared. Niall fisted his wet hair, loving the aching burn that spread through him, mixed in with little jolts of pleasure as Harry’s member pushed against the delicious bundle of nerves inside of him.

There was something in the way Harry touched him, so deeply and so completely, that made Niall feel like he was being worshipped. From the first time Harry had sat across the bar from him and smiled, Niall had felt like the only person in his world. Of course, it wasn’t true - there was Louis, and Paul, and Harry still held on tightly to his family, but… Even still, when it was just the two of them, alone together, it was as if Harry followed his very own religion in the church of Niall. It was an incredible feeling that often left him breathless.

It was in the way that Harry would reach out for him while they were doing the most mundane of things. Back in Gold Canyon, which already felt like a lifetime ago, Harry liked to press himself against Niall’s back while the blond was cooking, or link their fingers when they were at the shops. He liked to pull Niall’s legs in to his lap while they watched a movie, and trace little patterns on to his anklebone. It was Harry being Harry, and Niall loved everything about it.

“I love you like this,” Harry suddenly mumbled in to Niall’s wet, humid skin. “I love you so unraveled and so open.”

Niall could only find it in him to groan softly as he was taken faster against the cool tiles.

Harry pressed him harder in to the wall as the friction between them increased. Niall bit his lip hard to silence the noises bubbling up in his throat as the coil inside of him slowly tightened. At the same time, Harry was moving his lips as far as he could reach against Niall’s skin like he was telling it a sacred prayer.

The water ran cold before they had come down from their cloud, and they shivered as they cleaned each other off for the second time. Niall was still shivering when Harry wrapped him in a towel and dried him off. It was a painfully quiet, intimate moment between the two of them. The majority of the time, their relationship was built on sarcasm and inappropriate jokes, but then sometimes there would be moments between them where they chose to speak through their actions instead of their words. All they needed from the other was the reaffirmation that they weren’t alone, which was usually achieved through touch… lots and lots of touch.

Niall leaned back against Harry as they brushed their teeth. He felt sated and relaxed, as well as physically and emotionally exhausted. Their confession to each other hung around them like a secret privacy curtain. It was something they’d known for a while, but finally saying it was like a dam breaking, even more love spilling out.

Harry walked him to their bed and helped him in, Niall feeling a bit like a child.

As they drifted to sleep, there was a shared feeling that something had changed that day. Niall, in some way, had lost a piece of his innocence, exposed to the darkness lurking in Harrys’ world. Things would be different going forward, but they had each other and that was all that mattered.

———

Once Louis had a big, greasy meal in him the following morning on top of the solid eight hours of sleep he had enjoyed, he was more than able to follow behind Niall and Harry in his SUV. Louis seemed completely normal, if not a little quiet. Harry was worried about him until he made a scathing remark over breakfast about shower sex. After that, they knew that he was going to pull through with flying colors.

“Seriously, though… you guys are gross.” Louis made a face as he leaned out the window of his vehicle, all packed and ready to go.

“Don’t be jealous, Lou,” Harry called, slamming the trunk of the Mustang. “It’s not a good look on you.” To egg his brother on further, Harry slapped Niall’s bum as the blond passed him on the way to the passenger side door.

Louis flipped them both off. “I’m really going to hate this new arrangement, aren’t I?”

Harry climbed in behind the wheel of his baby, Niall already settled in with his shoes kicked off. Harry looked over at him, taking his hand.

“Is this going to be okay? Are _we_ going to be okay?” Harry asked softly.

“Yeah. We’re going to be just fine.” Niall nodded and leaned across the space between their seats, pressing his lips to Harry’s.

A honk from behind them forced them apart, and Niall dissolved in to laughter as Harry shook his head, firing up the engine and pealing out of the motel parking lot, Louis not far behind.

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

The distance to Sioux Falls, South Dakota was almost equal to the distance they had traveled from Gold Canyon, though the journey was much slower with no one’s life on the line. The three boys stopped for the night at a motel in Bozeman, Montana, where Niall and Harry promised to ‘behave themselves’.

They resumed their journey in the morning, and made it to their destination by dinnertime.

Niall looked out through the windshield as Harry turned off the county highway and on to a winding dirt road. It twisted and turned through the trees, and finally opened on to a massive property with a large old farmhouse erected dead center. In the distance Niall could see barns and machinery, as well as plenty of old cars and trucks. It appeared to be a salvage yard.

Harry parked the car alongside a glossy black 1965 Camaro adorned with white racing stripes. It was immaculate, and no doubt meant a great deal to someone. Moments later Louis’ pulled up as well.

Just as Harry climbed out of the car, the front door of the house flew open and a large, bulky man stepped out on to the porch. Harry slammed his car door and jogged up the few steps to the house, throwing himself at who Niall suspected was ‘Paul’. He was immediately enveloped in a firm hug. Niall then watched Louis make his way towards the two at his own pace. He seemed a little more hesitant than Harry had been, though as soon as a strong arm was extended in his direction, he closed the distance and joined in.

Niall slowly climbed out of the car himself, though he remained where he was, allowing the small family their moment together. His heart swelled as he watched Harry’s interaction with his guardian. He loved to watch him when he was happy, whether it be from something small like a good cup of coffee, or something exponential like the reunion that was playing out at that moment. Harry was beautiful when he was happy.

“Niall!”

Niall startled when Harry appeared in front of him, grabbing his wrist and dragging him in the direction of the house.

“Wait, Harry, I’ll just stay back here, it’s okay! You guys probably have so much to talk about-“

Niall tripped up the steps and came to an abrupt halt in front of the looming form of Paul. The man was even bigger up close.

“Paul, this is Niall,” Harry gestured between the two of them, voice sounding proud as if he were showing off his favorite thing. Niall gave a small wave.

“Well, you’re not what I expected,” Paul’s voice boomed. “A little small, maybe.”

Niall had no words.

“Bring it in, boy.” Paul slapped a heavy hand down on to his shoulder and tugged him forward in to a hug. “You did good.”

Beside them Harry was grinning. A moment later, though, he lifted his booted foot and swung it forward, effectively kicking Paul right in the shin. The man doubled over and Louis was unable to contain his laughter.

“You little _cocksucker-_ “

Harry draped an arm around Niall’s shoulders possessively. “That’s for sending my boyfriend in to a vampire nest, asshole!”

It was in that moment that Niall truly discovered the unique relationship between Paul and his boys.

The temperature was nice and cool when they entered the house, and the home was a lot tidier than Niall had expected for a single, older man like Paul. There were books everywhere, but Niall could tell that the Irishman knew exactly where every single one of them was and could reference them by request.

“Paul lives in an orderly chaos,” Harry explained, guiding Niall in to a cozy living room. The furniture looked to be original to the house, or just selectively picked antiques. It gave the room a warm, lived-in feeling. “Come over here, I want to show you something.”

Harry brought Niall over to the mantel over the worn brick fireplace that was crowded with old wooden frames. Each picture was filled with the smiling faces of people that Niall didn’t know. He had a feeling they were hunters, and though their lives were filled with darkness, in that moment they had been happy. That was the magic of photographs. They allowed a moment of joy to last forever, even through the hard times.

Niall’s eyes landed on one frame in particular that was stuck out in front of the rest. In the background was an old motor home, and in the foreground was a family of four. A beautiful woman with long brown hair had her arms draped around the shoulders of a little girl standing in front of her who looked to be no older than eight. A tall, handsome man stood beside them, and resting on his hip was a grinning, curly haired boy with dimples for miles.

“Harry,” Niall said softly, unable to take his eyes off of the slightly fogged glass of the frame.

“That’s them,” Harry replied, voice strained. “That’s my family.”

Niall nodded to himself. “They look like wonderful people.”

“You boys hungry?” Paul’s voice startled them. Niall turned towards the owner of the house while Harry remained facing the wall, working to compose himself.

“Starving!” Niall said cheerfully.

“Good. I made steaks.”

“When do you ever _not_ make steaks, Paulie?” Louis glided in to the room.

“It’s a man’s meal.” Paul said defensively.

“No amount of red meat is going to make young Harold any less of a poof, I’m afraid,” Louis winked at Niall and Harry finally turned towards the rest of them, looking hurt.

“Fuck you, Lou!”

“Okay, okay. Calm yourselves.” Paul raised his large hands in front of him. “That reminds me, actually. Louis, go show Niall to his room. Harry, you help me set the table. We’re eating like a family tonight.”

Niall and Harry both frowned simultaneously. “Wait, what?” Harry didn’t move from his spot by the mantel, despite Paul’s request for his help. “Niall’s staying in my room with me-“

“Like hell he is!” Paul snapped, folding his thick arms across his chest.

“Paul, I’m twenty-two years old-“

“And you’re back under my roof for the next coupla’ days, boy. My house, my rules, and that means no funny business while you’re here.”

Harry sighed heavily, rubbing his forehead. “I can’t believe you still call it ‘funny business’,” he said under his breath.

Niall wasn’t sure whether he wanted to laugh or cry at how utterly _normal_ the exchange that had just taken place had been. Regardless, he followed Louis upstairs to the many guest bedrooms. Niall took note of the door with ‘ _Harry’_ roughly carved in to it, tucking the information away for later when everyone else was asleep. Rules were meant to be broken. His room was tidy and small, with a big, thick duvet on the bed and an intricately carved headboard.

Everyone eventually congregated in the dining room and sat around a table full of home-cooked food. It smelled delicious. Niall felt Harry’s knee knock against his affectionately under the table and he smiled wide. As the clinking of utensils started up, Niall was hit with an overwhelming sense of belonging.

Paul looked around the table at all of them as they filled their plates, an amused look on his face. “Welcome home, boys.


End file.
